Predicting muscle forces measurements from kinematics data using kinect in stroke rehabilitation

Muscle strength is mostly measured by wearable devices. However, wearing such devices is a tedious, unpleasant, and sometimes impossible task for stroke patients. In this paper, a mathematical model is proposed to estimate the strength of the upper limb muscles of a stroke patient by using Microsoft Kinect sensor. A prototype exergame is designed and developed to mimic real post-stroke rehabilitation exercises. Least-square regression matrix is used to find the relation between the kinematics of the upper limb and the strength of the corresponding muscles. Kinect sensor is used along with a force sensing resistors (FSR) glove and two straps to collect both, real-time upper limb joints data and the strength of muscles of the subjects while they are performing the exercises. The prototype of this system is tested on five stroke patients and eight healthy subjects. Results show that there is no statistically significant difference between the measured and the estimated values of the upper-limb muscles of the stroke patients. Thus, the proposed method is useful in estimating the strength of the muscles of stroke patient without the need to wear any devices.     

SmartPads: a plug-N-play configurable tangible user interface

One common concern with video games today is the lack of physical activity they demand from the user. The design of games and tangible user interfaces (TUIs) that stimulate players and engage them into fun exercising activities is starting to attract the attention of many researchers and companies. This paper presents the software and hardware design and development of a TUI intended for exercise-based games targeted mostly towards children. The proposed TUI, SmartPads, can be constructed using elemental building blocks (pads) into numerous shapes. The pads-which are individually controlled by microcontrollers-are mapped onto a computer screen in real-time. A user interacts with the TUI by stepping on the pads. To evaluate the functionality and efficiency of the TUI, we developed three games in the field of exergaming. The games also have an educational value and are integrated with multimedia output modalities to enrich children’s playing experience.

     

Refuse-derived fuels as a renewable energy source in comparison to coal,rice husk,and sugarcane bagasse

The calorific potential of refuse-derived fuels (RDFs) was investigated with different coals, rice husk, and sugarcane bagasse. Carbon-sulfur analysis, gross calorific value (kJ/kg), and proximate analysis (%) were carried out. Total carbon of coal samples was found to be in the range from 62.65 to 79.19%, while RDF samples were ranged from 40.21 to 57.34% which were almost similar to rice husk (49.13%) and sugarcane bagasse (46.13%). Comparison of the total sulfur content of the coal (Duki) (10.52%) was very high as compared to RDF samples ranged from 0.17 to 0.46% and almost similar to rice husk (0.34%) and sugarcane bagasse (0.187%), while other coal samples ranged from 2.1 to 4.5%. The gross calorific value of the coal (Duki) (6,163 kJ/kg) was higher to other coal samples ranged from 4,935 to 4,972 kJ/kg, while found to be almost double to rise husk (3,518 kJ/kg), sugarcane bagasse (3,285 kJ/kg), and RDF samples (3,125–4,689 kJ/kg). The moisture content, volatile matter, and ash content were found higher in RDF 1 (42.14%), RFD 2 (66.55%), and coal (stone) (33.14%), respectively. Appropriate gross calorific value and very low sulfur content of the RDFs, especially RDF 2, appeared adequate to be used as a fuel with a lesser pollution potential and as an alternative fuel in mega cement industry of Pakistan.     

Head pose estimation based on face symmetry analysis

This paper addresses the problem of head pose estimation in order to infer non-intrusive feedback from users about gaze attention. The proposed approach exploits the bilateral symmetry of the face. Size and orientation of the symmetrical area of the face is used to estimate roll and yaw poses by the mean of decision tree model. The approach does not need the location of interest points on face and presents robustness to partial occlusions. Tests were performed on different datasets (FacePix, CMU PIE, Boston University) and our approach coped with variability in illumination and expressions. Results demonstrate that the changes in the size of the regions that contain a bilateral symmetry provide accurate pose estimation.     

A new iterative method for analysing nonlinear photonic-crystal structures

The article presents an efficient iterative method for analysing non-linear photonic crystals. The new approach is used for analysing a frequency converter constructed with a 2D pillar-type photonic crystal waveguide structure. The considered converter uses the non-linear properties and the compound waveguide structure. The analysis is based on the iterative resolution of two relationships between incident and reflected volume-waves. The reflection operator is expressed using Hankel functions. Numerical results have been obtained with moderate CPU time and memory requirement. Simulations obtained are in agreement with recent published results.     

Comparison of cost and treatment efficiency of solar assisted advance oxidation processes for textile dye bath effluent

The study investigated the efficiency and cost effectiveness of solar-assisted photochemical processes in comparison with advance oxidation processes (AOPs) for the textile effluents treatment. Efficiency of UV irradiation alone for one hour in removing color was almost double in comparison to solar radiation alone for effluents of different dye concentrations (E1>E2>E3). For coupled UV/H₂O₂ process, there was higher color removal efficiency obtained for effluent E₃ (85%) as compared to E₂ (70%) and E₁ (57%), while E1 showed higher COD removal efficiency (70%) as compared to E₂ (50%) and E₃ (62%). However, the efficiency of solar/H₂O₂ for COD removal was comparable to UV/H₂O₂, i.e., E₂ (57%) and E₃ (53%). In the case of UV and solar-assisted photo-Fenton processes, removal efficiency of the UV process was further increased as approached to almost 90% removal for E₁; on the other hand, the solar-assisted process efficiency remained the same. The relative efficiencies of AOPs were found to be in the order of UV assisted photo-Fenton process>UV/H₂O₂>UV alone. Although, solar-assisted Fenton treatments were relatively low and slow but without any energy consumption in comparison to high energy consumption of UV. Among the UV processes, UV assisted photo-Fenton treatment appeared to have better color removal efficiency with energy requirements of 5 kWh/m³, 8 kWh/m³ and 3 kWh/m³ for E₁, E₂ and E₃, respectively.     

Numerical thermal‐hydraulic performance investigations in turbulent curved channel flow with horseshoe baffles

A numerical work is performed to investigate the thermal‐hydraulic performance in a curved channel of a journal bearing equipped with oblique horseshoe baffles. Water, a working fluid, is passed through the curved channel at a constant temperature condition of 358 K. The effects of different parameters of baffles, that is, attack angle (α = 45°, 60°, and 90°) and the number of baffles (NB = 9 and 13 baffles), are examined. Influences of design parameters on heat transfer and friction performances are studied and displayed in terms of the Nusselt number, the friction factor, the Nusselt number enhancement ratio, and the thermal‐hydraulic performance factor (THPF). The numerical simulations present the flow structures of the tested channel in terms of velocity, isotherms, turbulent kinetic energy, and vorticity contours. The numerical results reveal that the adopted geometry of the curved channel with baffles yields a significant enhancement of heat transfer rate over the plain channel (without baffles), which is approximately 2.5 to 3.8 times. Also, the results show that the best condition to achieve maximum heat transfer is at angle α = 90°, NB = 13, and Re = 5000, compared with other conditions. Furthermore, the maximum THPF of the curved channel using baffles is 4.4 at the same condition. The results confirmed that the geometry of the baffles inside the curved channel has a remarkable impact on heat transfer improvement, accompanied by a reasonable increase in friction losses.